In The Red

In The Red Records began in Los Angeles in 1991, when Larry Hardy launched the independent label with a run of releases rooted in garage rock and its rough-edged offshoots. Its first record came from The Morlocks, followed by Kings of Rock. Hardy later said he wished he had waited for Mick Collins' The Gories material to be completed before issuing that first release, but the recording sessions moved slowly and he rushed the label's opening pair of records into production.

From those beginnings, In The Red built a catalogue around garage rock, punk, blues-damaged rock and outsider-minded bands. The label has issued albums by Osees, The Dirtbombs, Reigning Sound, Cheater Slicks, The Intelligence, The Hunches and The Ponys, alongside artists whose work stretches the label's sound in different directions, including Sparks, Andre Williams, Pussy Galore, Boss Hog and the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion.

Its roster also connects generations of underground rock: Black Lips, Jay Reatard, Vivian Girls, The Horrors, The King Khan & BBQ Show, Country Teasers, Mark Sultan, Dávila 666, Meatbodies and Fuzz have all released LPs through the label. More recent names associated with In The Red include Charles Moothart, Kid Congo Powers, Redd Kross, Earth Tongue, Love Fiend, Memo PST and Primitive Ring. The result is a Los Angeles label identity built around direct, unruly guitar music and artists working at the margins of mainstream rock.